Instructions:

For the sauce- heat olive oil over medium heat and saute onions, pepper, zucchini and garlic until tender, 5 minutes. Stir in cooked ground beef and tomato paste until well incorporated. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low and cook 30 minutes or so. {The longer it cooks, the better it will taste!} This will be very thick.

For the cheese filling- stir all ingredients together excluding half of the grated mozzarella cheese. Set aside.

For the pasta- Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta sheets 2 minutes less than package directions and drain. Place pasta on greased baking sheet until you are ready for assembly.

For assembly- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 jumbo muffin tins with squares of parchment paper. If they don't stay in on their own, that's ok--the pasta will help with that. Line the edges of the muffin tins with 1 pasta sheet per cup. {Pasta sheet will overlap about 2 inches.} Spoon about 1/2 tablespoon of sauce into the bottom of each cup {#1}. Next cut 9 pasta sheets into quarters and press one of these pieces of pasta into the bottom on top of the sauce {#2}. Top pasta sheet with a generous tablespoon of sauce {#3} and then a generous tablespoon of cheese filling {#4}. Repeat this pasta-sauce-cheese layering one more time being sure to press out any air bubbles. Top these lasagna cups off with a 3rd piece of pasta, more sauce and the remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until everything is hot and bubbly. Serve hot.

For the Fried Version: Wrap each stuffed “bomb” with 1 bacon slice; gently secure loose bacon with toothpick by inserting it through bacon and halfway into “bomb.” In 3-quart heavy saucepan or deep fryer, heat oil to 350°F. Fry stuffed “bombs” 4 to 5 minutes or until dough is golden brown on all sides. Place on paper towels to cool. Repeat with remaining "bombs". Serve warm with ketchup and mustard, if desired.

For the Baked Version: Heat oven to 400°F. Place bacon on foil-lined cookie sheet with sides. Bake about 8 minutes to partially cook bacon. Wrap each stuffed “bomb” with 1 slice partially cooked bacon slice. Place bacon wrapped dough 2-inches apart on two foil-lined cookie sheets with dough seam side down. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with ketchup and mustard, if desired.

Instructions:

In a small heavy saucepan simmer maple syrup, gingerroot, 3 tablespoons lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste until reduced to about 1 cup, about 30 minutes, and let cool. (Maple glaze may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. Bring maple glaze to room temperature before proceeding.)

Preheat oven to 350° F. If using cedar plank, lightly oil and heat in middle of oven 15 minutes; or lightly oil a shallow baking pan large enough to hold salmon.

Arrange scallion greens in one layer on plank or in baking pan to form a bed for fish.

In another small saucepan heat half of glaze over low heat until heated through to use as a sauce. Stir in remaining tablespoon lemon juice. Remove pan from heat and keep sauce warm, covered.

Put salmon, skin side down, on scallion greens and brush with remaining glaze. Season salmon with salt and pepper and roast in middle of oven until just cooked through, about 20 minutes if using baking pan or about 35 if using plank.

Cut salmon crosswise into 6 pieces. On each of 6 plates arrange salmon and scallion greens on a bed of mashed potatoes. Drizzle salmon with warm sauce.

Sear steaks 1 at a time, turning once, until well browned, about 10 minutes total per steak. Transfer steaks to a shallow baking pan (do not clean skillet) and cook in oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted in center of steaks registers 120°F for medium-rare, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a platter and let stand 15 minutes.

While steaks stand, pour off oil from skillet. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil and heat over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then sauté garlic until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a plate. Add tomatoes and thyme to hot oil (be careful; oil will spatter), then lightly season with salt and pepper and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, just until tomatoes begin to wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in any meat juices from platter, then scatter basil over tomatoes and spoon over steaks.

Remove from oven; transfer chicken to plate. Strain cooking liquid through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl; discard solids. Put cooking liquid back in pan and place on stove over medium-high heat. In small bowl, mash together flour and butter. Heat cooking liquid to boiling; whisk in flour mixture. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 10 minutes or until thickened, skimming and stirring occasionally. Add pearl onions, pancetta and mushrooms and chicken to pot, simmer 5 minutes or until everything is heated through. Serve garnished with parsley.

Instructions:

To assemble the sandwich begin by heating a skillet on medium heat. Butter each side of bread with 1 tablespoon of the herb butter. Top with both cheeses, tomato, arugula and prosciutto. Cook flipping halfway through. Should take about 2 minutes on each side.

Crispy Prosciutto

Preheat oven to 350. Line Prosciutto on a parchment lined baking sheet and cook for about 10-12 minutes. Place on paper towels to drain grease. The Prosciutto will continue to crisp up as it cools.

Add Herb butter

Combine butter, parsley and basil together until combine. (I used a fork to break up the butter.) Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.

For the glaze : 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon of water

salt for sprinkling on top

1/2 cup of mixd pitted olives

1 chillie, sliced

Instructions:

In a large bowl dissolve yeast with 3/4 water, add flour, oil and barley malt syrup or honey. Mix for for a few minutes, then add the salt. If you think the dough is too dry, add the remaining water. Wholemeal flour can require a little extra moisture than regular flour.

Knead vigorously until it looks smooth and elastic, this will take about 10 minutes if doing by hand or 5 if enlisting the help of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook.

Shape into a ball and rest for 20 minutes in a bowl, covered with a tea towel.

Stretch it with your hand to form a rectangle and fold into 3. This step will give strength and texture to your dough and is essential in order to obtain a soft, airy and chewy focaccia. Repeat one last time after 30 minutes.

Place the folded dough in an oiled oven tray, cover it with a tea-towel and let it prove for around 90 minutes or until it doubles in size.

Once the dough has risen, stretch it out to cover the tray and sprinkle the surface with seasalt.

Let it rest for another 30 minutes, then, using your fingertips, press the dough down onto the tray to create lots of little holes.

Drizzle the holes with the glaze and sprinkle with some more salt. Top with pitted olives and roughly sliced chillies.

Ingredients:

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

12 rib lamb chops

Instructions:

In a small bowl stir together the garlic, rosemary, olive oil, salt and pepper. Place the lamb chops in a shallow dish and pour the marinade over them, turn the cops to coat both sides. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Start a fire in a charcoal grill or preheat a gas grill. Place the chops on the rack over high heat and grill turning once, 5 minutes per side for medium rare. The outside will be well seared with the insides still pink.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook veggies until tender.

While the veggies are cooking, remove the steak from the freezer and use a very sharp knife to slice the meat as thinly as possible against the grain.

When the veggies are done cooking, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil over medium high heat.

Place 4 hoagie rolls in the oven for 5-7 minutes or until nice and warm, but not crunchy.

Add half the meat to the pan and season with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes until it is cooked through. Set aside.

Heat a bit more oil if needed and cook the other half of the meat, seasoning with salt and pepper. Return the first batch of meat to the pan, stir in veggies if yo wish, and top with cheese. Use 8 pepper jack cheese slices for a spicy version, or 8 white American cheese slices for a classic version. Place the cheese over the meat and when it starts to melt, stir the cheese into the meat and veggie mixture.

Divide the meat among the 4 hoagie rolls.

If using chipotle mayo, combine all ingredients in a blender (mayo, chipotle pepper, chipotle sauce, lime juice, salt and pepper) and slather desired amount on each roll. Otherwise spread a thin layer of regular mayo on the roll.

Directions:

Lightly mist a small skillet with cooking spray and bring over medium heat. Add diced mushrooms and cook for a few minutes until wilted/browned. Place the mushrooms in a medium bowl and add the chopped pepperoni slices and pizza sauce. Stir to combine and set aside.

Open the package of French bread dough and lay the log of dough on a clean, dry surface. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 8 equal rounds. Using your hands or a rolling pin, press the dough pieces into 3-4” flat rounds. Press each round into a prepared cup in the muffin tin, forming the dough into a bowl shape and pressing it up the sides.

Evenly distribute the pepperoni/mushroom mixture into each dough cup with a spoon. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over the top of each cup and follow with a pinch of Italian seasoning on each cup to taste.

Bake for 16-18 minutes until bread cups start to brown on the edges and are crusty to the touch. Let cool 3-5 minutes before serving.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely. While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.

Pour salsa on bottom of 9×13 baking dish. Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes. Top with any condiments you’d like (green onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425°F. Line the inside of a pie shell with heavy aluminum foil, pressing the dough against the side. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove foil, poke the bottom of the pie crust with the tines of a fork to create air vents. Return crust to oven, bake for an additional 4 minutes, or until the crust just begins to brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

Melt butter in a large skillet on medium heat. Add the apples, onions, and sugar, cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. In the last 30 seconds or so, add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Transfer mixture to a separate bowl. Increase the heat to medium high and in the same skillet add the Italian sausage. Cook, stirring only infrequently, until sausage is browned on all sides and is cooked through. Remove from heat. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon to a dish lined with paper towels to absorb the excess fat.

In medium sized bowl, mix together the cheeses and beaten eggs.

Place sausage on bottom of pre-baked pie crust. Add the cooked apple onion mixture over the sausage. Pour the cheese egg mixture over the apple mixture and spread it so it evenly covers the pie.

Bake at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Instructions:

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and add the meat. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, preferably several hours or even overnight. (Heck, I've kept the meat marinating for a couple days, still great.)

Soak the skewers in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling. This will help prevent them from completely burning up on the grill.

Cut the vegetables into chunks roughly the width of the beef pieces. Taking care not to poke yourself, thread the meat and vegetables onto double bamboo skewers. One way to do this safely is to put the piece that you are trying to pierce on a cutting board, and then push the skewers through the piece to the board. Using double skewers will help you turn the kebabs on the grill. If you keep a little space between the pieces, they will grill more evenly. Paint the kebabs with some of the remaining marinade.

Prepare your grill for high, direct heat. Grill for 8 to 10 minutes, depending on how hot your grill is, and how done you would like your meat, turning occasionally. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Ingredients:

8 or 9 plums or pluots (assorted colors, if possible), pitted and sliced

3/4 cup sugar PLUS 1 cup sugar for topping

1/4 cup all-purpose flour PLUS 2 cups all-purpose flour for topping

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1 stick butter

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

In a 9 X 13 baking pan, toss together the plums with the 3/4 cup sugar, the 1/4 cup flour, the cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon zest.

To make the topping, melt the butter over low heat. In a separate bowl, whisk together the 2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pour the melted butter and buttermilk into the dry ingredients and then stir until a sticky, wet dough forms.

Then, it’s just a matter of dropping spoonfuls of the dough evenly over the plums, leaving a few plums exposed. Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes, until the crust is light brown, the plums are bubbling, and (as I learned) a knife comes out of the doughy topping clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving; will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

This Recipe for Ribs - but DOUBLE the sauce ingredients - you'll need it for your pizza sauce.

1 lb. sliced Muenster cheese

1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

1/2 cup pickled jalapeno slices

Instructions:

1. To make the pizza dough, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle yeast over the water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes or so.

2. Turn the mixer on low and add the olive oil, followed by the yeast/water mixture.

Mix until combined and pulling away from the bowl.

Drizzle with olive oil, turn to coat, cover and refrigerate. (It actually gets better the longer it's in the fridge).

3. Make the ribs (mine were leftover, I made mine the day before for dinner). Make sure to save half of the sauce in a separate container - you should only use half of it for marinating and basting. Pull the meat off with your fingers and shred using two forks. Set aside.

Make the salsa by combining all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until pizza is done.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

4. Drizzle olive oil in a 10" cast iron skillet (a cookie sheet or flat pan would work as well)

Spread half of the dough in the pan, using your fingers to stretch it. Use a little less dough if you want a thin crust, more if you want a deep pan pizza.

Spread some of the rib sauce on the dough, followed by shredded pork, cheese and jalapenos.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and the crust is slightly brown.